AMX VP Arrested for Alleged Cybercrime

Sapphire Marketing, a manufacturer's rep in Paramus, N.J. for Crestron Electronics, alleges that its email system was breached and confidential information was reportedly stolen by an apparently rogue employee of AMX.

AMX vice president David Goldenberg was arrested without incident on March 28 and charged with Unlawful Access of a Computer System/Network-3rd Degree, Unlawful Access of Computer Data/Theft of Data-2nd Degree, and Conducting an Illegal Wiretap-3rd Degree.

Goldenberg's arrest follows an investigation by the Bergen County New Jersey Prosecutors Office, Computer Crimes unit, which uncovered the scheme by which Goldenberg allegedly stole thousands of proprietary and confidential emails through unauthorized access into Sapphire's secure email server.

AMX president and CEO Rashid M. Skaf was "surprised and stunned" by the accusations.

"It is the clear and unambiguous policy of AMX that every employee act with the highest moral and ethical standards, and to obey the law in all respects. We have always stressed fair and honest competition, and in no way do we condone any unethical or unlawful behavior."

Skaf says that Goldenberg has been placed on a leave of absence, effective immediately, while the matter is investigated.

"Entering our 26th year of business, we at AMX are proud of our high moral standing in the industry and the strength of character of our more than 650 people focused on supporting our customers worldwide. We look forward to continuing this tradition over the next 26 years," adds Skaf.

Goldenberg, who joined AMX in 2007, allegedly penetrated and downloaded business intelligence from several Sapphire employees, including information about sales proposals, commission statements, pricing, sales reports, personnel records, dealer and consultant and end-user lists among other private and confidential correspondence.

Marla Suttenberg, owner of Sapphire Marketing, says, "I am shocked by the corrupt sense of entitlement and indifference towards the privacy rights of Sapphire Marketing's clients and employees. It is a disgrace and embarrassment to our industry that a competitor would resort to these kinds of tactics to gain an unfair advantage."

According to the Bergen County Prosecutor's Office, an investigation revealed that Goldenberg had engineered the passwords protecting several email accounts. And, for a period of time, Goldenberg allegedly intercepted and read e-mails that related to potential contracts.

He then reportedly established a free email account that he had control over, and created an automatic forward of a Sapphire employee's email so that the emails would be sent to him directly. Sapphire Marketing estimates the loss in revenue from Goldenberg's actions to exceed $1 million.

Goldenberg was arrested without incident on March 28.

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